Sinead Baker| Deputy Online Editor
One of the best and most unique aspects of an interrailing trip is the variety. By travelling over such a large and diverse landmass you are constantly greeted by a variety of cultures, currencies, languages and climates. Every few days you enter a new region with a distinct feel which, although can be marked by inconveniences such as language barriers or bizarre exchange rates, leaves you with no opportunity for boredom! Looking back over a five day period feels like a month.
Another thing that you immediately notice is choice. You can choose where you go when you go, who you go with and for how long. You can choose luxury or to slum it, to spend one night in each place or four, and whether or not to book your hostels and trains in advance or to wing it. Every person you meet makes vastly different decisions; resulting in vastly different stories! Similar to interrailing, many want to travel to Europe using an RV. Using an RV gives you a little more privacy when it comes to traveling and perhaps a little more freedom as you’re not relying on a train system to take you places. For a little more information on using an RV, you can see this guide. My friends and I chose interrailing because there was so many of us and no one wanted to be responsible for an RV but if I was going on a family trip, I think an RV would be great so everyone sticks together.
We decided to go as an 8, despite the protests of many. We were warned that it can ruin the experience, by making it more difficult to befriend other travellers. However, I can honestly say that this decision paid off for us. This holiday allows you to meet every kind of person, from Australians to Mexicans to the seemingly millions of other Irish students who seem to know everyone you do.
Our route is one that seems standard for the Irish: Amsterdam, Berlin, Prague, Krakow, Budapest, Lake bled and Pag. Although our ticket allowed us to visit 10 places we decided to spend longer in each city. This allowed us to see everything each place had to offer (and to sleep off any hangover guilt-free!).
Our trip began in Amsterdam which turned out to be one of the easiest cities to master. Rather than pay for trams we rented bikes which were easily one of the best decisions of the holiday. The city itself is extremely pricey, especially for accommodation, but it’s worth it for lazy days of cycling through canals and parks, visiting sights such as the Anne Frank House and experiencing its unique nightlife. Cost of living in the Netherlands is an important factor to look into for anyone who is considering relocating to this beautiful city. With this being said, at least you know there’d be a lot for you to get up to over here.
Our trains to Berlin and Prague were memorable as we were forced to sit on the floor despite shelling out a few euro to book seats. In neither city did we actually pay for transport, despite needing it to navigate berlin; the massive cultural hub that seems to have no centre. Its clubs, graffiti and unique historical monuments, combined with its general dirtiness makes it by far one of the coolest and most diverse cities we visited. Prague remained one of our favourite cities despite our only major disaster in the form of a dislocated knee on a pub crawl (shoutout to Kelly horn, SF law) during an absinthe-fuelled Group dancing session. After a particularly dramatic ambulance trip (travel tip-always bring your health Insurance card with you!) the trip resumed leaving no man behind- although with markedly less walking.
The nightlife in Krakow and Budapest is unbeatable. Despite running into about half of trinity we managed to feel like we were in truly foreign places.
In Krakow our visit to Auschwitz, closely followed by another pub crawl, left us ready for the truly draining experience that is Budapest. Even lounging in the baths all day couldn’t help us regain our energy.
The trip is not over yet, and with over a week left to go a full reflection of our time is hard. For now, I’ll say that interrailing is definitely the most unique experience I’ve ever had. From the biggest clubs in Europe to tiny niche museums it’s the perfect mix of a social holiday and a trip seeped in culture. You can make it what you want it to be. I can’t count how many times an American or Australian traveller told me I was so lucky to live in Europe, and this is the perfect way to take advantage!
The only complaints I could possibly raise would be the cost or the amount of Irish/British travellers. For those who want to truly immerse themselves, it can be difficult to avoid running into those from your course or old school and to leave the beaten track. With regards to the cost, it can be a challenge to avoid spending every cent you own, but for the experiences that you get I cannot tell you how worth it it is!
